From the archives MOVE series -Feb05

Move Series From the archives - Feb 05. Oxymorons.

I had often wondered as to how some of the most profound messages are found in the most ordinarily used phrases/words. For instance the word "krishna" actually denotes attraction (towards God), the tamil word "adhrishtam" meaning -luck,- is derived from samskrit, signifyng something which cannot be seen.... etc.

In english language, " a fgure of speech in which apparently contradictory terms appear in conjunction" is termed an -oxymoron-; phrases like, too hungry to eat, legitimately illegitimate, informally formal, profoundly trite etc, are some examples. The Mahavakhyas from the vedassuch as "tat twam asi" (thou art that) Aham Brahmaasmi ( I am the brahman) etc (apparent oxymorons both of these) are to my mind, one of the best examples of the point made earlier..... namely that though on face, these appear smple they carry a very deep meaning.

In the same genre comes the word "ponder"; meanng "weigh mentally". This has more often been seen to do with the affairs of the heart, than of the brain. Let me explain; unless the "points to ponder" column touches the heart ( one does not see a brain teaser being written on a PTP column) there is nothing to ponder!!. Gettng to the heart of the matter is a phrase one often hears. The probable reason? Our adhyatmic tradition takes us to the belief that God resides in our hearts and till He is touched, there is nether weight nor signifcance. In other words, to get the full import, one has to refer to the heart, barin at best can give only explanations.

Lest, there is still any doubt, Albert Ensten is said to have observed, that the full import of his theory -of relativity, was perceived by him once he "realized" the meaning of his being a jew. This could have only come from his heart.

In the holy "gita", finding Arjuna still in dilemma, at the fag end of the discourse, Krishna finally implores him to totally surrender unto Him, and He will rid him of all his sins.

In the context of non-dualism ( not-two-ness) it's a bit of an oxymoron, that Arjuna should be seen as dfferent from Him ; perhaps one of the meaning of this could be that God only wants Arjuna to look inside him to realize the God residing in his heart and the moment he does that, he would become sinless. (it's my intrepretation and I do hope I am pardoned by the purists).

Another example can be found in "srimad bhagavatham". The asura king Bali offers the Lord three steps of space. With just two steps the lord in the guise of vamana" covers the entire earth, and the universe above, and asks Bali, as to where he should place the third step. At this stage, entering the dialogue between the Lord and her husband Bali, his wife addressesthe Lord thus; "You are the Lord of all three worlds, and in our ignorance due to maya, (which again is your creation) we asuras have only arrogated ourselves into believing that these belong to us. This being the case, is there any doubt as to who can give and to whom? ( recognize the oxymoron). She therefore implores the Lord for His Grace; and to pardon and bless her husband......

Coming back to our original word, namely, "oxymoron" . The word is derived from "oxus" meanng sharp & "moros" meaning stupid and foolish, which itself is an oxymoron. Surely nothing can be sharp and foolish at the same time. But that's the explanation; if we go deeper into the "meaning", it would probably tell us that a truly realized soul, quite often looks foolish in outward appearances.... For instance Stitapragnyaas like Ashtavakra & Lord Dattatreya.....

Think it over ............"

PS dt 15th Nov 09. After 5 years of writing this, the regret is that there is less and less of "heart" and more and more "brain" in every sphere of this cruelly temporal world, of every one trying to make oneself relevant. Suddenly terms like "survival of the fittest", "big fish eat small fish" etc, threaten one in a larger than life kind of way. God being the fittest, and the biggest, acknowledging the trend in this yuga, is apparently enjoying His own magnum opus. How does a devotee then aspire to rid himself of fear, anxiety, anger, hopelessness, unless He condescends?

Assuming that He does occasionally, just to amuse Himself, Will He give the bhakhthas the wherewithal to recognize, perceive, and perhaps experience the "bliss" at least for a moment?

Hope folks you are with this piece till now ..........


Love

Vichu